With Irma on his heels, he grabbed his cat and fled. He made it as far as Ridgeland

Humans weren’t the only ones feeling the humanitarian aid following Tropical Storm Irma’s brush through the Lowcountry.

Bonnie the cat felt the love, too, thanks to American Red Cross volunteers and others.

Richard Uhl, a feeding team volunteer at the Red Cross’ Bluffton Service Center, tells what happened.

“On Sept. 10, as Irma was bearing down on our area, an elderly gentleman arrived at the American Red Cross shelter at Ridgeland-Hardeeville High School in Ridgeland,” he said. “He had driven for 12 hours from his home in Florida alone with his cat in her carrier on the passenger seat for company. Ridgeland was as far as he could outrun the storm.”

That night, he was whisked off to Coastal Carolina Hospital after he suffered a serious medical emergency. He was later moved to the MUSC Hospital in Charleston.

Bonnie the cat was still in her car carrier in the man’s car at the high school parking lot.

When volunteer Red Cross shelter manager Becky Bowie found out, she came to her next shift with cat food, litter and a litter box.

“The gentleman’s cat was fed and cared for by Red Cross volunteers until the shelter was ordered closed on Tuesday, Sept. 12,” Uhl said.

Then Brittany Rubin, the local disaster program specialist in charge of the Red Cross office in Bluffton, took charge of the cat. She took it home to her apartment to care for her until the man could be reunited with his cat, Uhl said.

The man recuperated in Charleston and was placed in an apartment until he got enough strength to drive to Illinois to be with family.

“Two social workers agreed to drive from Charleston to Bluffton at that time to retrieve his car and his cat,” Uhl said

“I can think of no better example of the spirit of volunteerism in action,” he said. “We are blessed to live here in the Lowcountry where neighbors truly look out for the well-being of each other. These Red Cross workers exemplify the very best of this spirit and I am proud to serve alongside them.”

This story was originally published September 29, 2017 at 12:20 PM with the headline "With Irma on his heels, he grabbed his cat and fled. He made it as far as Ridgeland."